“We are not where we should be with the Western Balkans. I am very disappointed with how things have been done, with only one country – alluding to Bulgaria – blocking the whole process. Things are not going well”. The head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrellno beating around the bush during the summit between the leaders of the European Union and the countries of the Western Balkansprior to European Council which has given the green light to the EU candidate status of Ukraine y Moldavia (y Georgia once it meets the requirements demanded by Brussels) in a more than “symbolic” decision because of the message it sends to the Kremlin: the future of these countries is not under the influence of Russia but in the EU.
“It is a historic moment. Today marks a crucial step on its path to the EU”, celebrated the President of the European Council, Charles Michel. “If ever there was a time for Europe, this is it. It is a historic day for the European Union. The decision to grant the status of candidate to Ukraine is the correct one, for Ukraine and for Europe”, highlighted the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, about a process that will be long and complicated.
The accolade to kyiv, four months after the Ukrainian, Volodymyr Zelensky, tabled the petition – on the fourth day of the invasion of Russia – comes on the same day that the Twenty-seven have recommitted themselves to reinvigorating the enlargement process. Despite the promise, the six countries of the Western Balkans have left Brussels with empty hands after one four hour meeting tense and difficult, with many reproaches, and which has seen a confrontation between the French president, Emmanuel Macronand his Serbian counterpart, Alexander Vucic, according to diplomatic sources. A push and pull that has continued during a two-hour bilateral that has forced the planned press conference to be canceled and the European Council to start talking about the Balkans and not Ukraine and with requests from some Member States to agree on clearer conclusions with the European perspective of these countries.
“There have been no concrete results but it has been a good discussion and I will never underestimate it. But if you ask me if North Macedonia and Albania have achieved a date (to start accession negotiations), they have not achieved it. If Pristina (Kosovo) has achieved visa liberalization, it has not achieved it. If Bosnia and Herzegovina has achieved candidate status, neither has it, “Vucic summed up resignedly, whose country is the only one in the Balkans that has refused to apply the European sanctions against Russia for the war in Ukraine and that some colleagues accuse of playing both sides with Brussels and Moscow.
Priority since 2003
It was in the thessaloniki summit (Greece) when the EU promised the “European perspective” to these countries. Twenty years later, progress has been scant. Of the six countries – not counting Turkey whose chances of joining have sunk – only two, Serbia y Montenegrohave begun to negotiate some of the 33 chapters of the process with the European Commission, but with extreme slowness. north macedoniawhich had to change the country’s name to overcome Greece’s initial reluctance, and Albania they obtained candidate status in 2005 and 2014 respectively, but are still crashing 17 and 8 years later against the Bulgarian wall.
“It is a shame that a NATO country, Bulgaria, hijacks two other NATO countries, Albania and North Macedonia, in the middle of a hot war in the backyard of the EU and with 26 other countries sitting in a terrifying show of impotence”, has made the Albanian ugly, Edi Rama, which has spared no reproaches to the Twenty-seven for the spirit of an enlargement process that it considers “twisted”, which holds them hostage to bilateral confrontations. The attempt so far by the rotating presidency of the EU, which is occupied by France, to unblock the situation has fallen on deaf ears and the motion of censure lost by the Government of Kirill Petkovalthough diplomatic sources remain hopeful and consider it feasible for Bulgaria to lift its veto, although not this week.
geopolitical decision
“The next few hours and days will be important to see if we can find an agreement between North Macedonia and Bulgaria,” Macron explained. This long chapter shows in Borrell’s eyes, “that unanimity is a big problem in making decisions, so we have to think about how we make decisions in the EU because we cannot continue with a single country blocking months and months”, he warned. And the same thing happens with the approval of the liberalization of visas to Kosovothat like Bosnia and Herzegovina has the status of a potential EU candidate. “Kosovo has fulfilled all criteria regarding visa liberalization 4 years ago. Now it is the Member States that have to support this process because it is an injustice for the people of Kosovo”, the president recalled. Vjosa Osman which has closed ranks by granting candidate status to Ukraine and Moldova.
“I don’t see any harm to the Western Balkans if Ukraine and Moldova move forward. On the contrary, I believe that by opening the door to them, the EU sends a message that this is a geopolitical decision. I hope that at the same time that Ukraine and Moldova are moving forward, the EU understands that we too deserve to move forward because if the EU does not give a unified and clear signal on the Western Balkans, other evil actors will use that space”, he warned. The Albanian Prime Minister has also received with optimism the express granting of the status of candidate to Ukraine, although from their own experience they are aware that the journey may be long. “It is good to give them the status of candidates but I hope that the Ukrainians do not have many illusions about it,” said Rama, who has defined the day as “historic” but in a negative sense for the Western Balkans.